Cans, cans and more cans, and then some chert…

Yesterday began as a fairly typical CRM work day. Three of us headed into the field, while the remaining two stayed behind to babysit the injured vehicle. Kara “Ten Ply” and Linnie “G” (we’re coming up with our own “Jersey Shore” nick names here) arrived at the project area just in time for lunch, proudly transporting the bolt that had caused so much trouble the day before. Four and one half inches!! It may be a new record.

Kara “Ten-Ply” and the 4.5″ bolt from the latest flat tire

After dining on PB&J,Pringles and Gatorade we gathered round the ole’ log cabin and got down to recording the site. I took on mapping the cabin, trying to avoid the resident rat, and “Ten-Ply” and Lisa started getting the very diffuse/varied can/debris scatter under control. With Linnie “G” and “The Feature” plotting features on the GPS for mapping, I think we might get it done by Halloween. Just kidding. Tomorrow will be just fine.

The historic log structure.

Today saw us back out at the smaller parcel of our project. We had planned to knock out a few transects in there, taking advantage of the cooler weather, and would then move back to finish recording the cabin and debris scatter. The chert (crypto-crystaline silicate to the true geeks out there) bed that I’ve been wondering if we’d find was in the middle of our first transect! We recorded one large site, cores and primary reduction flakes (Sadly no finished tools, but not to worry, that Clovis point is out there!), and a couple of isolated flakes. By the time we arrived back at the north end of the project not only was it past time for lunch, but also almost time to return to town. We recorded a small cairn before driving back into Vernal, just for good measure.

"The Feature" and crew plotting artifacts in on the GPS

Our wild horse friends showed up when we were beginning our transect back after recording the large site. They watched us from afar, and took off when we started walking back towards them. There is a silvery-grey mare with them that is amazing! I don’t think she’d fit in my car, so she won’t be coming home with me. As for the daily dinner report: Last night was the Quarry Brew House. They too serve beignet-like things with dinner, but no parfait dishes full of butter. I went with a Polygamy Porter and the chicken basket. The conversations at the nearby tables consisted of a group of guys discussing how they screwed up a batch of Mister Beer, and a woman that may have been discussing a botched breast implant job. Tonight we drove out to the Naples Breakfast something something… All day breakfast, or cheeseburgers. I went with the cheese burger. They have tablecloths that are reproductions of a 19th century mercantile catalog from Rhode Island. It advertises the “Princess Bust Developer” (looks like a toilet plunger on a syringe) and Bust Cream or Food”. We’re hoping we’ll find one in the debris scatter at the cabin tomorrow. Kara already found a medicine bottle that she’s convinced contained a treatment for syphilis because, hey, just try and find a sheep herder or cowboy from the good ole’ days that didn’t need that!!